Conventionally, a traverser is used, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, in an automobile assembly plant, which provides a carry-in rail 11, 11 and a carry-out rail 12, 12, disposed parallel to each other, and a traverser 10 interconnecting the two ends of the carry-in rail 11 and the carry-out rail 12, wherein the traverser 10 includes a support member 13 driven by a pair of chains (not shown) and reciprocating between the end of the paralleled rails 11, 12. As will be apparent from FIG. 7, the support member 13 includes a flat upper surface on which a truck A is loaded.
The truck A, on which a car body A which is being assembled is loaded, runs along the carry-in rail 11 and is transferred to the support member 13 at the end of the carry-in rail 11. Then, the truck A is conveyed to the end of the carry-out rail 12 for transfer to the carry-out rail 12 to run thereon.
In this way, the traverser 10 serves to change the running direction of the truck A.
However, because the upper surface of the support member 13 is flat, when the support member 13 starts or stops, the truck A slides thereon by means of the force of inertia in a right and left direction as viewed in FIG. 7. Therefore, even if the expected stop position of the support member 13 is predetermined with respect to the carry-out rail 12, the actual stop position of the wheel H of the truck A might be deviated relative to the carry-out rail 12, so that the truck A could not be transferred to the carry-out rail 12.
In anticipation of more or less position deviation, sector-shaped guide members 14, 14 are mounted on the carry-out rail at the end portion thereof, FIG. 6, thereby guiding the deviated wheel H to the carry-out rail 12.
It is noted that guide members 15, 15, FIG. 6, are mounted on the carry-in rail 11 at the end portion thereof, because the carry-in rail 11 can be used as a carry-out rail, while the carry-out rail 12 can be used as a carry-in rail.
However, such a conventional traverser has problems as follows:
(1) The number of obstructive, projecting objects increases proportional to the number of guide members 14, 15 which project from the floor, with the result that the operators' feet are endangered.
(2) When the truck A slips on the support member 13, the wheel H and the support member 13 are slightly damaged.
(3) The truck A sometimes slips on the support member 13, not parallel but at an angle with respect thereto. When this happens, because the wheel H forces its entry into the carry-out rail 12, it cannot smoothly enter the carry-out rail 12, with the result that the wheel H sometimes damages the rail 12 or is damaged thereby.
(4) Even though the guide members 14 are mounted on the carry-out rail 12 at the end thereof, the wheel H could not enter the carry-out rail 12 in the event that there is excessive slipping of the wheel H.